1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a seeding tool, including a liquid wing member that facilitates single pass planting and fertilizing of seeds. The liquid wing insert of the present invention includes a tungsten carbide insert rigidly attached to a knife opener of the seeding tool. The liquid wing insert can be brazed or glued to the knife opener and can provide increased wear life of the knife opener.
2. Description of the Background Art
The agricultural industry is employing larger and more efficient single pass planting systems for minimal tillage planting. Such systems can employ a seeding tool having a removable knife opener, which breaks the soil and creates a generally v-shaped trough into which seeds are dispensed. The knife opener can include integral or attachable members which can facilitate the concurrent dispensing of the seeds at the proper depth and the fertilizer at the proper distance from the seeds. To properly deposit seeds and fertilizer at the same time can require special care in handling and dispensing to ensure that the fertilizer is spaced an appropriate distance away from the seeds. Dispensing the fertilizer such that it comes into contact with or is deposited too close to the seeds can result in the fertilizer damaging and/or destroying the seeds.
In conventional practice, the liquid wing is an integrally cast, outwardly projecting wing-shaped member of the knife opener casting. The conventional practice is also to thereafter coat the liquid wing member with a wear resistant material, such as KT-150, available commercially from Kennametal Inc., by a process referred to as “hard-facing.” The primary purposes of the liquid wing member are to maintain critical separation between the seeds and the fertilizer and to protect the end of a tube from which the fertilizer is dispensed. The liquid wing member can be designed to assure consistent depth placement of the fertilizer, even in wheel tracks, to prolong the life of the liquid fertilizer tube, and to prevent plugging of the liquid fertilizer tube in/heavy soils.
The conventional liquid wing member is generally a narrow triangular shaped protrusion which projects outward from a side of the knife opener. The hypotenuse of the triangular shaped member is adjacent the side of the knife opener and the longer of the two other side forms the leading edge with the third side thereof being the trailing edge. The leading edge begins generally flush with the side face of the knife opener. The side of the leading edge then gradually slopes out away from the side of the knife opener to a maximum outwardly projecting distance. The trailing edge slopes back towards and terminates against the side face of the knife opener a certain distance from the frontal member thereof, thus forming the shape of a “wing,” for which it is named. The end of a small, typically metal, tube through which the fertilizer is dispensed, terminates behind the liquid wing. The end of the tube projects slightly outwards from the side of the knife opener, but is protected by the triangular shaped liquid wing member during use.
The tip of the knife opener creates a generally v-shaped trough into which the seeds are deposited, and the liquid wing creates a second trough out to the side of the knife opener, a predetermined distance above and to the side of the v-shaped trough created by the tip. The conventional shape and angle of the liquid wing protrusion is designed to provide the desired separation between the seeds and the fertilizer and protect the fertilizer tube opening.
Some disadvantages of the conventional liquid wing protrusion can include an undesirably short wear life, difficulty in repairing when worn, and less than optimum shape characteristics resulting from the hard-facing process. Even the hard-facing of the integrally cast liquid wing member can be insufficient to provide the desired wear resistance. When the liquid wing has become worn, the knife opener must typically be rebuilt from weld material or replaced with a new knife opener with integrally cast liquid wing. Consequently, when the liquid wing wears, it is necessary to remove the knife opener from service until it can be rebuilt or replaced with a new knife opener. The more frequently the wing protrusion must be rebuilt or replaced, the more often the knife opener must be removed, placed out of service, and then rebuilt or replaced before it can be returned to service. If the knife opener is utilized with an overly worn wing protrusion, problems will almost certainly occur, including deposition of the fertilizer too close to the seeds, thus destroying or damaging the seeds, and rapid wear and frequent plugging of the fertilizer tube.
The conventional way to rebuild the liquid wing on the side of the knife opener is by depositing hard facing or welding material on the side of the knife opener to rebuild the wing shaped protrusion, which can be a difficult and time consuming process. This type of repair can also result in a shape which can be even less desirable than the original post hard-faced liquid wing member. As explained, the initial hard-facing process involves plating the newly cast integral liquid wing member with a hard, wear resistant material. However, this hard-facing process can also result in a blurring of the original cast shape of the liquid wing, making the final shape of the liquid wing less than desirable. Reconstituting a worn liquid wing member by laying down weldment can result in an even less optimal shape.
Therefore, it would be desirable to both limit the frequency with which the liquid wing protrusion wears down, and provide a more efficient manner of repairing a worn liquid wing, thus reducing the amount of time that the knife opener is out of service. According to the present invention, this can be accomplished by forming the liquid wing of tungsten carbide, i.e., a liquid wing insert.